Circuit-breaker.



L. ABEND.

CIRCUIT BREAKER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 29. 1917.

1,279,631. PatentedSept. 24, 1918.

UN IITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LOUIS ABEND, OF MERIDEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE CONNECTICUT TELE- PHONE & ELECTRIC COMPANY, IN C., 011' MERIDEN, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

CIRCUIT-BREAKER.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LOUIS ABEND, a citizen of the United States, residing at Meriden, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Circuit-Breakers; and I dohereby declare the following, when taken in connection with the. accompanying tion on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 a sectional view thereof on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 a detached perspective view of the carrier.

Fig. 5 a similar view of the adjustable mounting-plate.

Fig. 6 a similar view of the insulating sheet.

Fig. 7 a similar view of the fixed mounting-plate.

Fig. 8 a plan view of one of the modified forms which my improved circuit-breaker may assume.

My invention relates to an improved circuit-breaker for the ignition system of in ternal combustion engines, the object being to produce a simple, compact, durable, reliable and highly eflicient device con structed with particular reference to the maintenance of the parallelism of the contacts, notwithstanding their adjustment for varying their separation as may be required for whatever purpose.

With these ends in view, my invention consists in a circuit-breaker having certain details of construction and combinations of parts as will be hereinafter described and Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sept, 24, 1918, Application filed March 29, 1917. Serial No. 158,211.

from which it is insulated by a sheet 11 of v fiber insulation perforated at 12 for the passage through it of the rivets 9 which in turn are insulated from the mounting-plate 8 by flanged, insulating bushings 13. The said plate 10 is formed with holes 14 for the reception of the rivets 9, while the plate 8 is formed with holes 15 for the same purpose.

The complementary contact 16 is riveted into an inwardly turned finger 17 offsetting from an arm 18 made integral with and standing at a right angle to an adjustable mounting-plate 10 which is formed with a bearing-hole 19 by which it is pivotally mounted upon a stud 20 in an oscillatory plate-like carrier 21 having a central bearing-opening 22 receivinga concentric annular bearing-shoulder 23 rising from the bottom of a cup-like body or casing 24 within which the parts of my improved circuitbreaker are contained, the said body being provided in practice with a cover which is not shown.

For the adjustment of the contacts 4 and 16, I form the plate 10 with an elongated slot 25 receiving a clamping-screw 26 enterin a threaded opening 27 in the carrier 21. The said carrier 21 is provided with a spark-controller arm 28 secured to it by rivets 29. A clearance slot 30 formed in. the carrier 21 provides for the clearance of the inner ends of the rivets 9 as well as for the clearance of a terminal piece 31 to which an electric wire 32 is secured, and which is secured to the plate 8 by means of a screw 33 provided for by a hole 34 therein. (Fig. 7). The plate 10 is also provided with a large opening 35 for the clearance of the terminal-piece 31, also passing through a hole 36 in the fiber sheet 11. A helical spring 37 encircling the stud 20 and held in place by a cotter-pin 38, exerts a constant effort to hold the plate 10 down upon the carrier 21.

The contact spring 5 is provided with an insulating button 39 made of fiber, mica or equivalent substance, and successively engaged by the high points 40 of a four-point cam' 41 located at the outer end of a shaft 42 having bearing in the body 24 and driven from any source of power,commonly from the cam-shaft of the engine.

In the operation of my improved device,

the contact 4 is separated from the contact 16 by the sucessive engagement of the high points 40 of the cam 41 as'the same rotates. The amount of separation effected in this manner will depend upon the normal relative position of the button 39 to the cam 41.

. Therefore to increase or decrease the separation of the contacts 4 and 16, as may be required to take up wear, to adapt the device for use with dilferent types of engines, &c., the button 39 must be swung toward or away from the cam 40 and so repositioned with respect thereto. For this purpose, the screw 26 is unscrewed and the adjustingplate 10 swung on its stud 20 until the desired position of the button 39 with relation to the cam has been secured, after which semi-circular mounting-arm 44, while the complementary contact 45 is mounted in a corresponding semi-circular mounting-arm "46, both of the said arms being hung upon a stud 47 and insulated from each other by a suitable insulating washer 48. The said arm 46 is formed with an adjusting slot 49 receiving a clamping-screw '50 entering a circular carrier-plate 51 resting upon the bottom of the cup-like'body 24. The semicircular arm 44 carries a cam-roller 52 of insulating material turning upon a stud 53 in the said arm and successively engaged by the high points 40 of a cam 41 located upon the outer end of the shaft 42. A contact-spring 54 attached to a finger 55 upstanding from the said arm 44 bears against an insulated stud 56 mounted in the arm 46, and exerts a.

constant effort to maintain the contacts 43 and 45 in engagement. When the shaft 42 rotates, the high points 40 of the cam 41 successively engage with the cam-roller 52, whereby the contact 43 is separated from the contact 45 to a greater or less degree dependent upon the particular adjustment of the mounting-plate 46 at the time. The degree of their separation is regulated by I loosening the screw 50 after which the arm 46 may be moved, as desired, and inasmuch as it swings on the stud 47 which is also the center of the arm 44, it follows that any adjustment of the contact 45 must always be with its face parallel with the face of the contact 43.

It will'thus be seen that both forms herein shown and described of my improved circuit-breaker, provide for the maintenance of parallelism in the faces of the contacts when the device is adjusted to change the amount of their separation for any purpose. Ordinarily the cover of the body 24 will mount a distributer for use in conjunction with the circuit-breaker, but forming no part of my present invention.

Furthermore, under my invention, the alinement of thecontact-s is also maintained regardless of adjustments for varying the amount of their separation. Heretofore, when one of the contaetsha's been rotated for varying the amount of their separation, the parallelism of their faces has been'destroyed and their proper engagement prevented.

I claim 1. In a circuit-breaker, the combination with a carrier, of an adjustable mountingplate carried thereby, a contact mounted thereon, an insulated mounting-plate imposed upon the said adjustable mountingplate for movement therewith, a contactspring fastenedto the said insulated mounting-plate, a contact carried bythe said spring, and means engaging with the said spring for separating the two contacts for breaklng thecircuit, whereby by adjusting the adjustable mounting-plate with respect to the said actuating means, the degree of the separation of the contacts may be adjusted without altering the parallelism of their en-' gaging faces.

2. Ina circuit-breaker, the combination with anoscillating carrier, of an adjustable mounting-plate pivotally mounted thereupon, a contact mounted in the said plate, an insulated mounting-plate imposed upon the said adjustable mounting-plate, a contactspring fastened to the said insulated mounting-plate, a contact carried by the said spring, an insulating contact-button also carried b the said spring, and a cam engaging with the said button for separating the contacts and breaking the circuit, the adjustment of the said ad ustable contact-plate providing for varying the degree of'the separation of the contacts without affecting the parallelism of their engaging faces.

, 3. In a circuit breaker, a main support or housing, a rotatable shaft therein, a cam on said shaft, a carrier carried by said support and angularly adjustable around and relatively to the axis of said shaft, two normally engaged contacts and means for mounting them on said carrier for adjustment around a common center at one side. of said shaft, whereby the degree of separation of said contacts by the action of said cam may be va ried without disturbing the parallelism of the engaging faces of said points.

4. In a circuit breaker, a stationary support or housing, a rotatable shaft entering said housing in substantially the center, a.

cam on said shaft, a carrier adjustably mounted in said support for rotation relatively thereto, two normally engaged contacts and means for mounting them on said carrier for adjustment around a common center at one side of sad cam, whereby the disturbing the parallelism faces of said points.

In testimony specification.

of the engaging 1 whereof, I have signed-this LOUIS ABEND.

Witness:

MALCOLM NICHOLS. 

